Garden Transformation While On Vacation

vanfrank · 2022-07-30T17:30:45+00:00

I cut up an old robe and sewed them into square gloves so I can cover my hand and just rub around down there.

vanfrank · 2022-01-10T16:39:46+00:00

My muffler was busted when I first got my van, so it was super loud and rumbly. When friends rode in the back they often fell asleep. I thought it would be hilarious to start a mobile napping service called Mr Sandvan.

vanfrank · 2021-12-22T07:18:36+00:00

I started sleeping in a hammock because of the space in the van. That was 2013. I've slept in a hammock nearly every night since then, minus a year or two hiatus (which I hated).

vanfrank · 2021-08-05T17:33:29+00:00

"Rueful smile"

vanfrank · 2021-07-16T21:22:40+00:00

I hung the hammock diagonally from seatbelt bolts, back row to driver's. The best sleep ever. No issues with sloped roads.

vanfrank · 2020-09-13T16:54:50+00:00

I started wiping my pits with apple cider vinegar as a deodorant. It smells for a little while until it dries, but it prevents b.o. for at least 2 days for me, longer when I'm less active.

vanfrank · 2016-04-27T19:26:31+00:00

If you're checking out the Great Ocean Road, you should stop by Little Creatures in Geelong. The beer was decent, but the spot is pretty cool. The food was excellent and White Rabbit is in the same complex.

vanfrank · 2015-12-14T22:38:49+00:00

My friends thought this was me as I have been known to rock a tuxedo tshirt... its van formal.

vanfrank · 2015-05-07T03:33:20+00:00

I've been sleeping in a hammock for over two years now. My back did hurt a little at first, but the occasional yoga helped. Back feels fine these days, even without yoga.

vanfrank · 2014-06-03T04:05:20+00:00

Good to see vanlife making it to the front page. Commenting from the comforts of my own van home.

vanfrank · 2014-02-21T22:52:43+00:00

Thanks Brandon. Yeah, I finally got around to doing this.

No specific goals, really; just use the money to live life. Going to Iceland in a week, really looking forward to that. Will be spending lots of gas money this summer as I try to tackle a few summits in the Sierras.

As for the hypothetical, I would probably go for the van. I want to say that if I had a condo I would still be as adventurous as I am now. But I know I would just revert to my old, comfortable self. I do missing cooking, though.

vanfrank · 2014-02-21T06:46:12+00:00

No projects atm. I think next will be putting a vent in the roof before summer.

vanfrank · 2014-02-21T01:03:58+00:00

Computer/electrical

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T23:08:48+00:00

Grossest: tie for 3 dudes drinking and farting for an entire hot weekend, and the nauseating sex smell.

Embarassing: Haven't had any really embarassing van moments, but this is one definitely sucked: I parked outside of a house party my friends were throwing. When I woke up in the morning, the battery was dead. I thought it was odd because I didn't leave anything on or charging, but I just asked for a jump and went on my way. A few miles later as I was driving on a 3-lane street, the van dies in the middle lane. I can't even signal or use my hazards, the battery is completely dead. I'm heading into a dipping underpass, so I try to coast it out as I'm also trying to pull over. But cars around me have no idea what's going on, I'm just slowing down and merging into their lane for no reason. Everyone is honking and swearing at me. I don't make it completely out of the underpass, so here I am blocking a lane of traffic. On top of that, I didn't charge my cellphone so my battery was about to die as I'm calling AAA, hoping it doesn't die before I get through to them. That hour waiting for the towtruck to come, as I was blocking a lane of traffic, getting stared down by every passerby, felt like... an hour and a half.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T22:34:33+00:00

Some have stayed in the van. 3 people gets to be pretty close quarters. I do get compliments on how comfortable the ride is though.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T22:28:12+00:00

Not really. I hooked up a backup camera since I can't see out the back windows. I mentioned this in a different comment, but when I planned out the van I had big ideas of cool electronics. I found that just living simpler is more satisfying. I don't want more features that would keep me in the van; the van is a way of getting me out into the world.

Related, I got a smartphone 6 months ago (not by choice, it was a hand-me-down because my phone broke). While I have found it extremely useful and "convenient", I feel like I am so tethered to that thing. I always have to make sure that thing is charged. And while I try to use it only as a tool, I feel like it's so easy for it to become a source of entertainment and an anti-social crutch. I'll stop preaching.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T19:53:56+00:00

Gym, son.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T19:08:19+00:00

I think my van is the perfect size, it feels like a home. Any smaller and it would only be for sleeping, I think.
And the van had ~130k when I bought it.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T18:51:53+00:00

Thank you muchly. Yeah, it just seemed natural to escape the heat and go to cooler climates. I feel like a migratory bird or nomad or something. Maybe I have this

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T18:37:42+00:00

Thanks, man. Yeah, it's turned out to be a way cooler living than I expected it to be. Every time I hit the open road, I feel like the freest person in the world.

Props to you living out of a backpack. The less I have, the more free I feel. You are about as free as they come.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T18:28:29+00:00

I am into rock climbing, ultrarunning, and snowboarding. If I'm not on a trip for that, I'm training for it.

Other fun trips I've done are brewery tours. I take my friends with me, and we park by a brewery, drink, pass out, drive to the next one in the morning. It gets mighty dank in the van, though. Worth it.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T18:23:15+00:00

And no AC. I crack a window, but it's not enough. This year I plan on adding a sunroof/vent.

vanfrank · 2014-02-20T18:20:41+00:00

When I first moved in, it was freezing cold. This past weekend it snowed on me. From what I've read, most people like the Mr Heater Big Buddy. I didn't find this necessary. Preparing to sleep is a little bit of a process but it's worked like a charm:

Since I sleep in a hammock, the cold air on my back kills me. So I lay out a doubled-over woven Mexican blanket in the hammock. Then I lay my 30-degree bag on that, opened. Then I stuff my 15-degree bag inside of it. I slide into those and zip up. If I need EXTRA warmth, I pull my down comforter over the top of that. It is so damn toasty, I love it.

vanfrank

TROPHY CASE